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Alfonzo Dennard claims he only pushed police officer

Print | Comments () Posted by Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff February 13, 2013 07:27 PM

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By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

Patriots cornerback Alfonzo Dennard, who is on trial for assaulting a police officer in Nebraska in April 2012, claimed he only pushed the officer, according to a report in the Omaha World-Herald.

“I’ve never been in this situation in my life,” Dennard said during a recorded jailhouse interview, which was played Tuesday at the trial in Lincoln, Neb. “I didn’t hurt you, I didn’t punch you in the face on purpose. You ran up on me so fast.
“I pushed you, that’s all that happened.”

The alleged incident occurred six days before the NFL draft. Dennard, 23, faces three charges, felony assault on a police officer and misdemeanors for third-degree assault and resisting arrest. He faces up to seven years in prison and a $12,000 fine if convicted of all three charges.

The police officer, Benjamin Kopsa, testified that he told Dennard he was under arrest four or five times before the former University of Nebraska star hit him.

"It felt like a very hard object hitting me in the jaw," Kopsa said.

Read the World-Herald's coverage here.